Showing, Not Telling
by Faelady
Summary: Kaname has an unexpected response to Itsuki's constant questioning about his relationship with Mana. He's been waiting all this time for his shy girl to make the first move. When Mana finally works up the courage, sparks ensue. Oneshot.


AN: Warning! This is an edited version of a lemon. If you have a problem reading implied sexual relations, please leave now! This was written for a weekly challenge for the Makinlemonade ML (wonderful group!), thus the theme information. Just a little explanation of the themes, if anyone cares—"Is that all?" the fic must begin and end with this line; "Company Pier" the characters should be classmates or co-workers (the "never fish off the company pier" cliché).

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Title: Showing, Not Telling

Series: Juvenile Orion

Pairing: Kaname x Mana

Theme: "Is that all?" and Company Pier challenges

Disclaimer: Juvenile Orion does not belong to me.

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"Is that ALL!"

Kaname was beginning to regret finally answering Itsuki's constant question of 'So how far have you gone with Mana?' Especially since the answer was the current cause of Itsuki's consternation. Heck, he was even beginning to regret even coming up to the school's roof to check on his napping friend. If he had left him alone as he usually did, Itsuki wouldn't have even had the chance to ask him that question for the fiftieth time.

"You're kidding, right? I mean, you guys have been together for almost a year now, and nothing has happened?"

"Itsuki, you know it's not that straightforward. I don't want to do anything Mana doesn't want. I don't want to hurt Mana." Kaname's uncharacteristic unburdening of himself to Itsuki was just another symptom of his current state of frustration and worry. Frustration because the girl he loved—he could admit it to himself, at least—was one of the most innocent girls he had ever seen. Worry because the idea of causing Mana unhappiness in any way was just too overwhelming. The intensity of the psychic bond caused all the guys to dislike making her unhappy, and as the one closest to Mana, it affected Kaname most of all.

"You are clueless, man. As much as it pains me to tell you this, have you ever seen how Mana looks at you? Besides, when I kissed her, she was just embarrassed. She actually kisses you back."

Kaname didn't know what pissed him off more—finding out that Itsuki had kissed Mana, or knowing that Itsuki had been spying on him and Mana. His dark glare bored into Itsuki, who let the silence stretch uncomfortably long as he methodically stubbed his cigarette out on the concrete.

With one of his rare flashes of seriousness, Itsuki finally spoke. "We were in the psychic realm. Strictly non-corporeal, so I really don't think it counts, before you try to maim me for it. And just to let you know, I thought I had a chance—even a tiny one—of Mana loving me, I'd take it. The rest of us are like favorite brothers to her. She just doesn't see us that way. I mean, she's been in love with you since you were both, what, like seven or eight?"

"Six. Our parents met when we were six. My parents and her dad died when we were nine. And then I didn't see her again for seven years."

"And she still loved you. You're the reason she came back here a year and a half ago. Heck, you're part of the reason she agreed to fight."

"I know all that Itsuki! But let me ask you this...How do you feel when she cries?"

Silence.

"Shit, man, you don't play fair," Itsuki sighed heavily.

"You see my problem."

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Kaname was only half listening to Mana's usual cheerful chatter as he walked her home from school that afternoon. Although they had never officially declared themselves to be a couple, everyone else seemed to accept them as such. After the night about six months ago when they had all watched fireworks together from the roof of the school, Itsuki and Shiba had both backed off of their pursuits of Mana, though both were still obviously in love with her. Kaname figured it was more in deference to Mana's blatantly obvious feelings than any unwillingness to compete with him over the same girl. After all, what Mana wanted Mana got, as far as the rest of the boys and Haruna were concerned.

Kaname's mental ramblings were interrupted when he noticed that his companion had grown silent. Instinctively, he glanced around first to make sure that she wasn't sensing nearby danger. Not seeing any threat, he then turned his attention to Mana, to find her looking intently at him.

"What is it, Mana?"

"I was wondering if you'd take me flying again someday soon."

"Umm, sure." The answer popped out almost involuntarily, with no forethought on Kaname's part.

'Do I want to spend extended amounts of time with you in my arms, pressed against my chest? I'm not _that _stupid. Of course I'm going to say yes,' Kaname thought to himself.

Mana's eyes lit up with that sparkle of hers that had made all the boys her willing servants, and Kaname knew he was in trouble.

"What about tonight? We don't have school tomorrow, so it wouldn't matter if we were out late."

"Sounds good."

"Thanks, Kaname-kun! See you later, then!" Mana pecked him on the lips, before practically skipping up the steps to entrance of her apartment complex.

Kaname stood there for a long minute, random thoughts swimming in his head—how they had gotten to her apartment building without him noticing, if the weather forecast had predicted rain for tonight, and whether she would kiss him again later. He shook off his dazedness, and turned to head over to his apartment building. It took him the entire walk to sort out what had been nagging at him since the beginning of his conversation with Mana. It finally dawned on him that it was Mana's behavior that was bothering him. Her asking him on a date, the kiss—both were slight displays of boldness from his normally shy girl. And for the next few hours until left to get Mana, he pondered what this might mean.

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Mana leaned against the railing on her balcony, waiting for Kaname to come winging in and mulled over her current dilemma. She knew he was waiting for some sign of encouragement from her before he tried to take things further. Though she hated to admit it, it had taken her a while to realize it.

After she moved back, there had been the chaos of her rediscovery of her powers as a mind breaker, and her resolve to fight to prevent any more suffering for the world. She had always known her feelings, but her realization during that first lull in the fighting that her he returned her love had been astounding. The next few months after that had been a tentative establishment of the beginnings of a serious relationship, the first baby steps of acknowledged love. She had basked in the bliss of held hands and tentative kisses, until a certain sense of dissatisfaction had begun to dawn on her.

She knew how she felt about Kaname. She loved him, she trusted him, she _wanted_ him, but she had no idea how to tell him all that.

'_I'm just not good at that kind of stuff,'_ Mana thought with a tinge of frustration. Every time she even considered discussing the topic with Kaname, her shyness got the better of her. Asking him not to die, asking him to promise to return to her anytime he went into battle was one thing. Asking him if he wanted her like she wanted him was another thing entirely. She had been debating her options and had decided that maybe new tactics were in order.

'_If I could figure out a way to show him...'_ Mana's thought trailed off as her view of the stars was obscured by a dark shape in the sky heading towards her. As Kaname landed neatly on her balcony, she couldn't help but once again admire his large black wings—beautiful to her, at least.

"Ready to go?"

"Mmm-eeek!" Mana couldn't stifle a squeak as Kaname abruptly and unceremoniously swung her up to rest bridal-style in his arms. He looked a little startled when she wrapped her arm around his back underneath his wings, against his bare skin—something she didn't usually do.

'Serves him right!' Mana thought with mild indignation, even as she settled closer, leaning her head comfortably against his shoulder while he winged them away from her apartment.

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They were perched on a rooftop so that Mana could admire the stars when the predicted rain became a reality. Kaname hurriedly gathered her up and made for his apartment, which was the closer of the two, and also conveniently empty since his sister was working the evening shift—entering by the balcony's sliding glass door would have entailed some interesting explaining if anyone had been home. Still, Mana was soaked by the time they landed on the balcony outside. Well, so was he, but Kaname wasn't exactly worried about himself. If Mana got sick because of him, he'd never hear the end of it from the guys—especially Itsuki. Kaname hurried Mana inside and ushered her down the hall to the bathroom.

"Go ahead and dry off. I'll bring you something to change into."

Kaname headed back up the hall to his bedroom, where he quickly shucked his own wet clothes and scrubbed a towel through his black hair. He paused long enough to pull on dry boxers and pants, but didn't bother with a shirt for himself in his hurry to get back to Mana. Quickly he grabbed a dry button-down shirt from his closet and walked back toward the bathroom. He rapped softly on the door and called out to her.

"Here's something dry for you to wear until your own clothes are done."

The door cracked open and Mana stuck her hand out. Kaname placed the shirt in her grasp and watched as arm and shirt quickly disappeared.

"Do you want anything warm to drink? How about a blanket?" he called through the door.

"I'll be fine now that I've dried off, Kaname-kun. I wasn't that cold to begin with." Her cheery voice contained an unusual note, one he couldn't readily identify.

The door clicked open and his mind stuttered to a halt just for a moment. He had never imagined that such an ordinary article of clothing could look so extraordinary on her. She had rolled the cuffs of the shirt back to fit the shorter length of her arms, and the tails of the shirt in the front and the back draped almost to her knees. The front of the shirt clung to the slope of her breasts, and it was plain that she had removed at least some of her wet underwear. It was also plain, Kaname thought a little dizzily, that she was lying about not being cold, because her hardened nipples were clearly outlined beneath the drape of the cloth. Almost involuntarily, he found himself moving forward and reaching for her, lowering his head to kiss her. It was if, with the higher functions of his brain shutting down due to lack of blood supply, his instincts had taken control of his body.

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Mana felt the intensity of Kaname's stare as she exited the bathroom clad in nothing but his button-down shirt. She had briefly debated the wisdom of leaving on her bra and panties, but the uncomfortably clammy feel of them against her skin and the air-conditioned cool of the apartment had decided her. Now, with the heat of Kaname's gaze washing up and down her, she couldn't decide if she had been wise or not.

Mana clasped her hands tightly in front of her in her usual unconscious gesture of nervousness, and suddenly realized that Kaname's attention had abruptly shifted to somewhere south of her eyes. Belatedly Mana realized he was staring at her breasts, which were being prominently displayed due to the position she was in. She blushed and dropped her arms to her sides.

Kaname took a step towards her, and Mana felt the blush burn hotter on her cheeks, despite the fact that her embarrassment was rapidly draining away to be replaced by hope and desire. Slowly, almost as if he were afraid she would pull away, he brought his hands up to her cheeks, tilted her face up to his, and lowered his mouth to hers.

The first kiss was brief, his tongue painting a caress across her lower lip and retreating, but on the next their mouths meshed, tongues darting past lips and teeth to slide against one another. When Kaname broke off the kiss, Mana stared back at him. They had been here before, and Kaname had always stopped, not pushing her for anything further.

'_Well, not exactly here,_' Mana thought a little bemusedly. '_I've always had on more clothes than this in this situation.'_

Most of the time he had been right to call a halt before things went too far, either because of the location or because her shy uncertainty. Now uncertainty and shyness on her part were gone, and she grasped one of the hands resting at her waist, drawing it up to cover one of her breasts. Her slight encouragement had accomplished what she hoped, as his other hand came up to cover the opposite breast, gently kneading.

When Kaname lifted his head and stilled his hands, Mana first wanted to voice her frustration, but when she opened her eyes and focused her gaze on his, she saw the unspoken question he was asking. A blush highlighted her cheeks once again as she lifted her hands to the top button of the shirt she had so recently donned. She began fumbling with it, fingers made clumsy in her nervousness, and hindered by the fact that she kept her eyes on his, hoping to express her determination and desire. With those thoughts in mind, Mana was finally able to free the stubborn top button. When her hands moved to the next button, Kaname gently moved them aside and took over the task.

He worked loose one button after another without pause and then slowly slid the shirt open. Mana had never really before considered Kaname's reaction to her generous proportions, but now she worried. She knew she wasn't fat, but she also knew she had rather more in certain areas than most of the other girls in her class. Clothed, her voluptuous figure wasn't quite so obvious, but in a swimsuit—or naked—it was hard to miss. Mana fought an intense bout of nervousness as Kaname stared, before she noticed the expression of admiration and desire plain on his face.

His hands slid under the open shirt to rest briefly on her shoulders before sliding in a caress down both her arms. The shirt slid down her arms to pool at her feet, leaving her standing naked in the hallway. Hands loosely encircling her wrists, he leaned in closer for another kiss, pressing her back against the wall. While their mouths met, his hands moved to cup her breasts, testing their weight and fit in his palms.

Some tiny, still functioning part of his brain had screamed at him that her first time shouldn't be up against a wall in the middle of the hallway, so Kaname scooped her up and staggered the thankfully short distance down the hall into his bedroom.

He set her gently down on the edge of the bed and paused for a long moment, clearing his throat.

"Mana, are you sure?"

She blushed again, as she did all too often around Kaname.

"I'm sure, Kaname-kun," she answered softly. "I love you. I want..." Mana's voice trailed off, but Kaname seemed to understand.

"I love you, too," he confessed quietly.

The happy glow that projected from her at this admission was almost incandescent. It struck Kaname like a blow to the midsection, making an already painful arousal even worse.

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Kaname was collapsed against her, his head buried in the hollow between her neck and shoulder. Mana's hands twined around his neck as she nuzzled into his hair.

When he finally raised his head, his expression was faintly worried, and Mana could see the relief spread across Kaname's face when she smiled up at him.

"Why did you wait so long?" She questioned him softly.

"I wanted to know that you wanted me, too—that it wasn't just me."

Mana could feel her smile widen, and she pulled him towards her.

Right before she covered his mouth with hers, she whispered, "Is that all?"

7


End file.
